The OER Knowledge Cloud makes use of cookies. By continuing, you consent to this use. More information.
Deconstructing disengagement: analyzing learner subpopulations in massive open online courses
Kizilcec, René F. · Piech, Chris · Schneider, Emily

PublishedApril 2013
ConferenceLAK '13: Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Learning Analytics and Knowledge
Pages 170-179
CountryUnited States, North America

ABSTRACT
As MOOCs grow in popularity, the relatively low completion rates of learners has been a central criticism. This focus on completion rates, however, reflects a monolithic view of disengagement that does not allow MOOC designers to target interventions or develop adaptive course features for particular subpopulations of learners. To address this, we present a simple, scalable, and informative classification method that identifies a small number of longitudinal engagement trajectories in MOOCs. Learners are classified based on their patterns of interaction with video lectures and assessments, the primary features of most MOOCs to date.

In an analysis of three computer science MOOCs, the classifier consistently identifies four prototypical trajectories of engagement. The most notable of these is the learners who stay engaged through the course without taking assessments. These trajectories are also a useful framework for the comparison of learner engagement between different course structures or instructional approaches. We compare learners in each trajectory and course across demographics, forum participation, video access, and reports of overall experience. These results inform a discussion of future interventions, research, and design directions for MOOCs. Potential improvements to the classification mechanism are also discussed, including the introduction of more fine-grained analytics.

Keywords MOOC · learner engagement · trajectories of engagement

Published atCalifornia
LanguageEnglish
RefereedYes
DOI10.1145/2460296.2460330
Export optionsBibTex · EndNote · Tagged XML · Google Scholar


Viewed by 594 distinct readers




CLOUD COMMUNITY REVIEWS

The evaluations below represent the judgements of our readers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Cloud editors.

Click a star to be the first to rate this document


POST A COMMENT
SIMILAR RECORDS

Digging deeper into learners' experiences in MOOCs: Participation in social networks outside of MOOCs, notetaking and contexts surrounding content consumption
Veletsianos, George; Collier, Amy; Schneider, Emily
Researchers describe with increasing confidence what they observe participants doing in massive open online courses (MOOCs). However, our understanding of learner activities in open courses is limited by researchers' ...
Match: Schneider, Emily

MOOCs for professional teacher development
Jobe, William; Östlund, Christian; Svensson, Lars
A MOOC is a trending concept in education that is disrupting traditional methods of learning consumption. The emergence and use of MOOCs for professional teacher development is still uncommon, but on the verge of ...
Match: MOOC; United States

Research and practice of the mixed teaching mode for engineering graphics based on MOOC
Zhang, Jingying; Yang, Wei; Tong, Xianying; Zhang, Hui; Cocchiarella, Luigi
As a new educational mode, it is driving changes in teaching content, methods, models and teaching management by MOOC. It brings opportunities and challenges to the reform of education and teaching in Colleges and ...
Match: MOOC

How much OOO in your MOOC?
Kuna, Maja; Parrish, Patrick
Il formato MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) continua a creare numerose riflessioni, soprattutto in merito alla sua capacità di raggiungere tanti utenti contemporaneamente e all’uso innovativo delle nuove tecnologie. ...
Match: MOOC

A comparative study of the teaching effect of 'Flipped' MOOC class and conventional class
Chen, Xiaolu; Wu, Helan; Li, Kam Cheong; Yuen, Kin Sun; Wong, Billy Tak Ming
MOOC and flipped classes are models of instruction which have sprung up in the last few years, in educational circles all over the world. In the School of Physics and Engineering at Tongji University, we have integrated ...
Match: MOOC

Open educational resources in Italy: Connecting the macro, meso and micro levels, towards a national OER ecosystem
Nascimbeni, Fabio
The chapter presents a snapshot of the state of the art of Open Educational Resources (OER) in Italy. It starts from the macro public policy level, noting that OER are part of the national school policy, to the advocacy ...
Match: MOOC

Open Educational Resources: Innovation, research and practice
Burgos Aguilar, José Vladimir; Cox, Glenda; Czerniewicz, Laura; D'Antoni, Susan; et al.
Open Educational Resources (OER) – that is, teaching, learning and research materials that their owners make free to others to use, revise and share – offer a powerful means of expanding the reach and effectiveness ...
Match: MOOC

Learning designers in the ‘Third Space’: The socio-technical construction of MOOCs and their relationship to educator and learning designer roles in HE
White, Steven; White, Su
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are frequently portrayed as “agents of change” in higher education (HE), impacting on institutional practices, processes and structures throughout HE. However, these courses do ...
Match: MOOC

MOOCs: What motivates the producers and participants?
White, Su; Davis, Hugh; Dickens, Kate; León, Manuel; Sánchez-Vera, Mar M.
Within the current educational landscape, Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have stimulated extensive interest and hype in a short time. It has been asserted that these open courses are no more than a prelude to the ...
Match: MOOC

Opportunities and threats of the MOOC movement for higher education: The European perspective
Schuwer, Robert; Jaurena, Ines Gil; Aydin, Cengiz Hakan; Costello, Eamon; et al.
The Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) movement is the latest ‘big thing’ in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) which threatens to transform Higher Education. Both opportunities and threats are extensively discussed in ...
Match: MOOC